Rural England Prosperity Fund Grants

Last application round running until 23:59 on 31 January 2025.

Ashford Borough Council has been successful in securing its’ allocation of the UK Government's UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) and Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF). The Council's allocation for the following Rural England Prosperity Fund grants is £315,786. The Council is running these two grant schemes using this funding:

• Ashford Rural Green Business Grants, including Ashford Rural Energy Efficiency Grants and Ashford Rural Energy Transition Grants
• Ashford Rural Place & Provenance Grants, including Ashford Rural Boost Grants and Ashford Rural Investment Grants

The Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF) is applicable to the rural areas of the Borough as defined by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) for the purposes of this fund. View a map of eligible areas, sourced from Defra [pdf] 569KB.

Therefore, only businesses and projects located within these areas are eligible to receive funding through these proposed schemes.  

This is a capital fund as defined by Defra and therefore no revenue costs or associated work can be eligible through these schemes.  

Additionally the guidance from Defra states that projects that have already received funding from other Defra schemes or where these projects could be eligible for other Defra funding are not eligible. View Ashford REPF Programmes and other Defra Funding [pdf] 593KB.

There is additional funding available from the council's UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) and Rural England Prosperity Fund (REPF) for community organisations seeking to make improvements to community infrastructure such as village halls or play areas. Find out more about the Community Amenities Grants here.

Ashford Rural Green Business Grants

Ashford Rural Energy Efficiency Grants

The Energy Efficiency Grant of up to £5,000 aims to facilitate energy efficiency projects in commercial premises in rural areas of the Ashford Borough.

Read more about the Ashford Rural Energy Efficiency Grants

Ashford Rural Energy Transition Grants

The Energy Transition Grant of up to £15,000 aims to facilitate energy transition projects in commercial premises in rural areas of the Ashford Borough.

Read more about the Ashford Rural Energy Transition Grants

Ashford Rural Place & Provenance Grants

Ashford Rural Boost Grants

The Rural Boost Grant of £500 to £3,000 aims to facilitate projects in commercial premises in rural areas of the Ashford Borough for food and drink production businesses and those in the hospitality and tourism sectors. This grant will support that business to improve productivity, operational processes and support its viability and growth.

Read more about the Ashford Rural Boost Grants

Ashford Rural Investment Grants

The Rural Investment Grant of between £3,000 to £10,000 aims to facilitate projects at commercial sites in rural areas of the Ashford Borough. This grant aims to support the creation and uptake of start-up space for food and drink producers, hospitality or tourism businesses or businesses in sectors supporting these industries. Additionally, the grant also aims to support projects that will help tackle the last-mile challenge, thereby significantly increase the number of visitors to rural hospitality or tourism destinations.

Read more about the Ashford Rural Investment Grants